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July 10, 2012 - There's a lot in this comic.
On one level, this comic is about the constant threat of youth exploitation in the workplace. As the lowest paid employees (if paid at all) the youth often gets saddled with blame that often may actually be a reflection of poor training and management from the higher ups. It's made even worse when you consider the state of unpaid internships in this country. Here's the law defining what unpaid internships are supposed to be for for-proffit companies: Fair Labor Standards Act. In my experience from how they're portrayed in media to these lawsuits, as well as personal experience unpaid internships are usually in huge violation of policy. But the money gained from a lawsuit, and the penalties for those that level the lawsuits simply aren't worth it. I'd really like an employment agency such as OSHA to step up and enforce these violations. It wouldn't even be that hard. Call most film production, magazine publication, or recording offices and if the person answering the phone is not a paid employment they're almost definitely in violation. But for now many for-proffit companies, especially the film, music, and fashion industries continue to violate those policies.
Just look at this article from Slate. Of the activities Katy Waldman lists as doing as an intern in the ninth paragraph, most (transcribe hours of interviews, stuff envelopes, send rejection slips, sort mail, write for the blog, fetch lunch for editors, quarter limes for parties, search for Twitter quotes, and fact-check) sound pretty flagrantly illegal especially if these activities were unsupervised (and additionally "attend parties" is a gray area depending on whether there were any responsibilities at the parties).
Now all this isn't to say some internships aren't great opportunities, but they negatively impact the current youth unemployment situation as well as cause a form of income discrimination in which only people from wealthy backgrounds can afford to be interns.
I get pretty frustrated by the whole indentured intern situation, and I'd love more discussion of this, but I have to remind myself of Conan O'Brien's closing speech after being forced from his dream job on the Tonight Show. He stood up for what he believed in, lost, had every reason to be angry, and refused to give in to that, which is generally the attitude I aspire to rather than cynicism and bitterness.
Of course, I'm human and can make mistakes, but I try.
This comic also has some mention to hypocricy in religious doctrines which is pretty self-explanatory.
Anyway, shirt:
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